NASCAR: 5 drivers who could lose their playoffs spots
By Asher Fair
NASCAR drivers who could lose playoff spots: No. 5 – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
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Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is the only driver on this list who has won a race this year, yet even he isn’t totally safe when it comes to qualifying for the playoffs.
Of the 10 drivers who have won a race this year — and more specifically, of the six who are sitting at one victory — Stenhouse ranks lowest in the point standings, sitting in 14th place with 10 races remaining on the schedule.
The 16 playoff spots go to the regular season champion and the 15 drivers who rank next highest in victories, so in the event that there are more than 16 different regular season winners (or more than 15, if the regular season champion is winless), not all single-race winners are safe. The tiebreaker to determine which make the playoffs and which don’t becomes points.
There could absolutely still end up being at least 16 regular season race winners, given the fact that there are plenty of what we might call “wild card” races left on the schedule before the playoffs.
Even aside from his Daytona 500 victory, Stenhouse has had a solid season. By all accounts, he has had a career year. But the fact that he still ranks lowest among the winners puts him at risk of missing the postseason, which would be his first postseason since 2017, if more and more winners emerge.
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Which of these five drivers won’t qualify for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs? The Ally 400 is the next race on the schedule, and it is set to take place at Nashville Superspeedway this Sunday, June 25. It is set to be broadcast live on NBC beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV today and be sure not to miss it!